Student teacher Review

I had a great time at the insight weekend - meeting other students looking at similar careers was brilliant, and the chance at some classroom-style experience was great. The activities gave me an opportunity to find out more about the education field, and the talks by teachers who had gone through the program was a great insight into the realities of everyday teaching life.

Completely! Free food and drinks, support available anytime we needed it, and really approachable staff. The programme was well-run and organised, and they made sure to listen to us when we offered feedback. Occasionally the activities were a little simple, but always with the right intention - to help us see ourselves as teachers.

There were a dozen different people to speak to over the course of the two days, which was really helpful as it gave us a real range of opinions and ideas about the reality of the experience of teaching but also the way the system is heading as it stands.

It wasn't massively relevant to my degree studies as such, although they did try to pair us with other students doing the same degree, but in terms of the application of my degree to a real world career it was very insightful and helpful. English is multi-applicable but that is always helpful in these situations!

Very well structured programme - not too long days, which was nice and meant we had time to socialise a little with the other students on the programme which was nice. Lots of activities - again, somewhere a little straightforward but there was no harm and they were only a small part of the programme.

Really positive! We were all really engaged the entire time - especially when they brought the local school children in and we got to plan and deliver a teaching session of our own, which was really positive. Down time, like meals which they provided, were communal and really positive. The kids brought a lot of energy!

They definitely committed to investing in us as teachers - having so many people on the programme meant there was less investment as individuals, and all the activities were definitely working on general skills, but they did also try to personalise the worksheets at moments and have us relate the exercises to our own experiences.

There was a realistic attitude to the everyday experience of teaching that I appreciated, and there was plenty of information available about what it would be like to work in one of the various roles available within Teach First itself which was super important in my assessment of what to do next.

Like I said previously, this was less focused on working for Teach First directly and more on the experience of teaching, but they definitely recreated the classroom experience well and also provided lots of information on the roles available within the company - they're mostly campus based though so not easily reflected in a programme like this.

It was very valuable in terms of helping me realise what a career in teaching might actually look like! It was also super helpful to learn about the programme's inclusion of working towards a master's degree, as this was already part of my consideration of any future career, so that was great.

They covered 100% of costs up to £35 and 50% up to £80 - I only came from Cambridge, so this was more than reasonable, but some students came from Durham or further so I can imagine that for some students this was less achievable. However, the compensation helped to keep the programme accessible.

As far as I remember, there were several networking opportunities throughout the two days - there was an opportunities fair on the second day with members of similar organisations, which was particularly good because it demonstrated similar but different opportunities within the sector and the other work being done with students.

They were really positive! There were lots of opportunities to meet people who had gone through the course, either into other things or into teaching or into Teach first itself, as well as a chance to speak to other students in a similar position to myself and other professionals from the sector.

There was less information available on this, since as I said you don't apply to work for Teach First but instead to be a teacher, but the opportunities fair at the end definitely showed that there are a variety of things to be involved with as far as the company is concerned.

I would absolutely recommend this to a friend, yes! It was a really positive weekend meeting other students and potential co-workers as well as people who could tell us what to expect. The afternoon with the children in the classroom environment was particularly great, as they were really receptive and fun.